Situated on St. George’s Island and the embankments of the Bow River, Calgary Zoo, Botanical Gardens and Prehistoric Park contains a staggering range of creatures of all sizes.
For those visiting on a Sunday, the safari brunch in the Destination Africa area is a great way to start your visit. The adventure really begins in the cool Antarctic area with the Penguin Plunge exhibit. Here, visitors will learn about and meet four types of penguin – the Humboldt, Gentoo, Rockhopper and King – with a whole variety of interactive activities to enjoy.
The dinosaur park is located close by and houses some outstanding replicas of many different dinosaur species which are hidden within the prehistoric plant life. For those who want to discover the dinosaurs of our time, the nearby Canadian Wilds habitat allows visitors to come face to face with some of Canada’s native species of bear, moose, buffalo, puma, otter, marmot and many more besides.
Discover the fabulous creatures of Eurasia, South America and Africa by crossing over the footbridge to St. George’s Island. Keep an eye out for red river hogs and their charming piglets as well as gorillas and their young. The zoo has had particular success in recent years with breeding programmes. It’s worthwhile visiting the Eurasian habitat, where visitors can see a diverse range of different species, including snow leopards, Amur tigers, Japanese snow monkeys and red pandas. The marmosets and other monkeys in the South American habitat are also an absolute must-see.
One of the Zoo’s most popular attractions is the beautiful botanical garden. The Dorothy Harvie Gardens has 2.4 hectares of native plants, and the conservatory contains a wide range of species of birds and invertebrates. It is divided into four themed sections: the tropical garden, arid garden, rainforest and butterfly garden.
Calgary Zoo is situated in Bridgeland, just a short drive east from Calgary, and has two, paid, on-site parking areas. It is also accessible on public transport by taking the C-Train from the downtown area of Calgary. Calgary Zoo is open every day with the exception of Christmas Day and charges a fee for admission.
